My tripod and I stood in the dawn cold for a long time waiting for the clouds obscuring the Minarets to clear, as I was sure they would. They didn’t clear as much as I had hoped, but I am pleased with this one, which seemed to cry out for an Ansel Adams style B/W treatment.
Should I have made a color version? Framed tighter or wider?
Nikon Z6II, Z100-400 lens.
Very dramatic scene! Was this from Minaret Summit? Years ago, I thought about climbing the face of Clyde Minaret (the main one in the center) but friends who had done it says it’s very dangerous; lots of loose rock, so I opted out. I did climb Banner Peak long ago. It’s great country!
I like the image and the cloud shadows, but I think the detail in the very deep shadows could be brought up some. The textures in the rock and the clouds come across nicely.
Just for grins, it would be nice to see the color version.
-P
Thanks Preston. Yes, shot from Minaret Summit, and I might have overdone the deep blacks! As for color, here’s a treatment of that same shot. As spectacular as they are, the Minarets are a boring grey in low light and a boring reddish brown in sunlight. They need clouds and snow to set them off. Still I return to the summit whenever I’m up there for sunises and sunsets.
James: What a wonderful scene! Bring up the shadows in the mid ground shadowed trees as @Preston_Birdwell mentioned and both versions would be improved although this does work for me as is. Looks like a great experience handsomely rewarded.>=))>
I think you made the right choice to go black and white. The color balance is a bit off in the color version as posted, but even if you correct that I don’t think it would hold the drama that the black and white does.
I too like the idea of letting a little detail into the dark mid-ground. I could also see darkening those brighter areas in the lower left corner to let the eye sweep smoothly to the mountain.
Appreciate the fine tuning John. Might just have to rework the image and see about a framed print.
